Okay, I am really sorry if this is long. If you could read this I would be very greatful, I am worried

I am an 18 year old female. I have not had a period in nearly 6 months, for the past few years my periods have been irregular, sometimes the gap between them can be 3/4 months, or even more.

I have noticed since 2010, I have started putting on weight on my stomach area ONLY. Before, I used to have a very flat stomach and small waist. Now, my stomach almost looks like I am having the menopause, it has gotten much fatter, and it is continueing to do so, and I don't know why, my legs and arms are putting on hardly any weight though in comparison.
I have started to gain alot of weight, when before I wasn't, even though I jog 4 times a week and hardly eat, I am a UK size 14, I used to be size 10.

My face has put on weight, my chin used to be slim, now my chin has become big and fat. I can't wear ponytails because I'm self concious. I don't have a defined jaw line like before, my chin seems to be getting bigger every month. It's depressing me.

My cheeks are constantly red, if it gets warm or I excersise, they get very very red. Even though I have olive skin. I sweat alott, I shower every morning for 45 mins, but at the end of the day I feel hot and unclean, my hair gets very greasy too, even though I wash it daily. I get warm easily, in the winter I would go out without a jacket and still feel okay, I would never wear a big jacket because it would make me sweat too much. In summer, I get overheated alot.

Pretty much my whole body has started to become significantly hairier. My eyebrows, nostrils, legs, arms, knuckles, sideburns, private area, underarms, stomach and above my top lip. I used to have extremly fine hair before compared to other people. Now I am as hairy as them, sometimes more.
My hair has become brittle, and I get split ends alot, even though it's greasy.

My teeth have started changing, I never needed braces, but all of a sudden, they have started to become crooked, I get tooth aches alot, infact I have one right now. I know tooth changes can be caused by the jaw getting bigger. Maybe this is caused by 'moonface' acosiated with cushings and pituitary tumours, where too much cortisone is realesed as a result of a pituitary tumour.

My vision has gotten worse, I used to have pretty much perfect vision up until I was 16. Then all of a sudden it decreased by -1.5 in both eyes, a year later, it had decreased by another 0.5 in both eyes.

My shoulders, have began to change to a strange slight 'hump' like shape. My posture has become very bad because of this, and my neck feels very tight and wound up. My neck looks as though it is pushing against my shoulders which are drooping forward. My neck looks like it has become alot shorter than it was too, and the skin/fat around it is hard, tough and lumpy. My neck, armpits and inner thighs have discoloration. I have a discoloured line going across my neck. I have purple/pink stretch marks on my inner thighs.

I have noticed I have been getting a few wrinkles on my face too. I do not smoke so this seems odd, I have lines around my eyes and a few small ones on my forehead when I smile.

I have a lump behind my ear (where the pituitary gland is) that has been there since I was like 12. I thought it was nothing, though it seems to have been growing slowly, as through the years it seems to have gotten bigger. When I touch it, it doesn't hurt. Though I can feel it starting from behind the top part of my ear, to the bottom of my jaw. Last time I checked, it wasn't that long. I'm really worried about whether this is a pituitray tumour.

My memory has been all over the place lately. I walk into rooms, and sometimes forget why I went in. I don't remember peoples names easily. I forget appointment times, where shops are, and what day of the week things happened.

I have had epilepsy in the past (first seizure when I was 14, had 4 in total) so I was wondering if this could be linked to a tumour.

I have also felt down and had a lot of anxiety for the past three years. I don't know if the hormones from this tumour would have caused this. Because I have at times felt suicidal and unstable.

At night before I fall asleep, I tend to for about 20 minutes or more, keep waking myself up by having these 'spasms' where my body jolts. My whole head and body will shake and I will wake up. I noticed this happens more when I have less sleep. Also, if I don't sleep enough I get eye twitches, where my eye will twitch by itself. I also feel extremely tired in the mornings.

Twice, I have woken up in the middle of the night and seen things which weren't there. Once, I woke up at around 2am, the light was off, I checked my phone, and then saw the figure of a girl standing by my bed. I was extremely scared, but she was smiling so I thought she's probably not evil. Then she faded into the furniture! I went toilet, then fell asleep again. Another time, I saw the figure of a middle aged man dressed as a clown by my window. I was absoloutely terrified because he looked really creepy. Then he faded into the furniture too, before I fell asleep again.

I know I have pretty much all the symptoms of a condition called 'cushings' yet my doctor wants to do an ultra sound to check for cysts on my ovaries. This would not explain the growth of my chin, the 'hump' like shape of my back and the lump behind my ear, my bad memory and also all the stress I have been feeling lately. The fact my body/face is changing so much depresses me. I am someone who likes to look their best, so this has been pretty hard, especially because my family think I am being vain, and my teachers think I am superficial for being insecure, and that I'm causing my insecurities to happen because they think I let myself get fat, when I didn't.

If anyone could give me an answer I would be very greatful, because I am tired of not knowing what is going on. I don't know if my doctors will let me get tested for cortisone imbalances. Anyway, do you think it's likely I have a cushings or a tumour? To be honest, I would rather just find out what has been causing me to constantly feel tired and why all these changes have been happening so I can get it all sorted.

(Original post by sonicginandtonic)
Okay, I am really sorry if this is long. If you could read this I would be very greatful, I am worried

I am an 18 year old female. I have not had a period in nearly 6 months, for the past few years my periods have been irregular, sometimes the gap between them can be 3/4 months, or even more.

I have noticed since 2010, I have started putting on weight on my stomach area ONLY. Before, I used to have a very flat stomach and small waist. Now, my stomach almost looks like I am having the menopause, it has gotten much fatter, and it is continueing to do so, and I don't know why, my legs and arms are putting on hardly any weight though in comparison.
I have started to gain alot of weight, when before I wasn't, even though I jog 4 times a week and hardly eat, I am a UK size 14, I used to be size 10.

My face has put on weight, my chin used to be slim, now my chin has become big and fat. I can't wear ponytails because I'm self concious. I don't have a defined jaw line like before, my chin seems to be getting bigger every month. It's depressing me.

My cheeks are constantly red, if it gets warm or I excersise, they get very very red. Even though I have olive skin. I sweat alott, I shower every morning for 45 mins, but at the end of the day I feel hot and unclean, my hair gets very greasy too, even though I wash it daily. I get warm easily, in the winter I would go out without a jacket and still feel okay, I would never wear a big jacket because it would make me sweat too much. In summer, I get overheated alot.

Pretty much my whole body has started to become significantly hairier. My eyebrows, nostrils, legs, arms, knuckles, sideburns, private area, underarms, stomach and above my top lip. I used to have extremly fine hair before compared to other people. Now I am as hairy as them, sometimes more.
My hair has become brittle, and I get split ends alot, even though it's greasy.

My teeth have started changing, I never needed braces, but all of a sudden, they have started to become crooked, I get tooth aches alot, infact I have one right now. I know tooth changes can be caused by the jaw getting bigger. Maybe this is caused by 'moonface' acosiated with cushings and pituitary tumours, where too much cortisone is realesed as a result of a pituitary tumour.

My vision has gotten worse, I used to have pretty much perfect vision up until I was 16. Then all of a sudden it decreased by -1.5 in both eyes, a year later, it had decreased by another 0.5 in both eyes.

My shoulders, have began to change to a strange slight 'hump' like shape. My posture has become very bad because of this, and my neck feels very tight and wound up. My neck looks as though it is pushing against my shoulders which are drooping forward. My neck looks like it has become alot shorter than it was too, and the skin/fat around it is hard, tough and lumpy. My neck, armpits and inner thighs have discoloration. I have a discoloured line going across my neck. I have purple/pink stretch marks on my inner thighs.

I have noticed I have been getting a few wrinkles on my face too. I do not smoke so this seems odd, I have lines around my eyes and a few small ones on my forehead when I smile.

I have a lump behind my ear (where the pituitary gland is) that has been there since I was like 12. I thought it was nothing, though it seems to have been growing slowly, as through the years it seems to have gotten bigger. When I touch it, it doesn't hurt. Though I can feel it starting from behind the top part of my ear, to the bottom of my jaw. Last time I checked, it wasn't that long. I'm really worried about whether this is a pituitray tumour.

My memory has been all over the place lately. I walk into rooms, and sometimes forget why I went in. I don't remember peoples names easily. I forget appointment times, where shops are, and what day of the week things happened.

I have had epilepsy in the past (first seizure when I was 14, had 4 in total) so I was wondering if this could be linked to a tumour.

I have also felt down and had a lot of anxiety for the past three years. I don't know if the hormones from this tumour would have caused this. Because I have at times felt suicidal and unstable.

At night before I fall asleep, I tend to for about 20 minutes or more, keep waking myself up by having these 'spasms' where my body jolts. My whole head and body will shake and I will wake up. I noticed this happens more when I have less sleep. Also, if I don't sleep enough I get eye twitches, where my eye will twitch by itself. I also feel extremely tired in the mornings.

Twice, I have woken up in the middle of the night and seen things which weren't there. Once, I woke up at around 2am, the light was off, I checked my phone, and then saw the figure of a girl standing by my bed. I was extremely scared, but she was smiling so I thought she's probably not evil. Then she faded into the furniture! I went toilet, then fell asleep again. Another time, I saw the figure of a middle aged man dressed as a clown by my window. I was absoloutely terrified because he looked really creepy. Then he faded into the furniture too, before I fell asleep again.

I know I have pretty much all the symptoms of a condition called 'cushings' yet my doctor wants to do an ultra sound to check for cysts on my ovaries. This would not explain the growth of my chin, the 'hump' like shape of my back and the lump behind my ear, my bad memory and also all the stress I have been feeling lately. The fact my body/face is changing so much depresses me. I am someone who likes to look their best, so this has been pretty hard, especially because my family think I am being vain, and my teachers think I am superficial for being insecure, and that I'm causing my insecurities to happen because they think I let myself get fat, when I didn't.

If anyone could give me an answer I would be very greatful, because I am tired of not knowing what is going on. I don't know if my doctors will let me get tested for cortisone imbalances. Anyway, do you think it's likely I have a cushings or a tumour? To be honest, I would rather just find out what has been causing me to constantly feel tired and why all these changes have been happening so I can get it all sorted.

Using my superpowers I can say that there is a 67.475% chance that you have something wrong with you.

I can also see that there is a 100% chance that you're a ****ing retard. How the hell is anybody on a forum going to tell you whether there is something wrong with you or not?

Nobody on hear can tell you unfortunately, all you can do is talk to your doctor. If you feel these things are being overlooked, try writing them all down on a piece of paper and taking them with you to your GP so you don't forget any. Its possible that a lot of them are just hormonal changes as you grow up, or they may be related, or they may be seperate conditions. Try not to worry until you know whats going on - there's probably a much less scary reason for these things.

Pretty much my whole body has started to become significantly hairier. My eyebrows, nostrils, legs, arms, knuckles, sideburns, private area, underarms, stomach and above my top lip. I used to have extremly fine hair before compared to other people. Now I am as hairy as them, sometimes more.
My hair has become brittle, and I get split ends alot, even though it's greasy.

My teeth have started changing, I never needed braces, but all of a sudden, they have started to become crooked, I get tooth aches alot, infact I have one right now. I know tooth changes can be caused by the jaw getting bigger. Maybe this is caused by 'moonface' acosiated with cushings and pituitary tumours, where too much cortisone is realesed as a result of a pituitary tumour.

My shoulders, have began to change to a strange slight 'hump' like shape. My posture has become very bad because of this, and my neck feels very tight and wound up. My neck looks as though it is pushing against my shoulders which are drooping forward. My neck looks like it has become alot shorter than it was too, and the skin/fat around it is hard, tough and lumpy. My neck, armpits and inner thighs have discoloration. I have a discoloured line going across my neck. I have purple/pink stretch marks on my inner thighs.

(Original post by BakerClive)
Nice wall of text, try to be more concise next time as I got bored just skipping it. Also go and see a doctor!

If you'd read it you'd know she's been to a doctor already.

OP it's unlikely anyone here has more experience or knowledge of medicine than your GP. Like ILurfSmurf said if you're not sure if your GP has been informed of all of this write it down so that you can go through possible symptoms and know you've covered everything. If you've already done that then the chances are your GP's recommendations are probably based on the more likely assumption that there's not just one thing causing all those symptoms.

(Original post by sonicginandtonic)
I have a lump behind my ear (where the pituitary gland is)

Since when? The pituitary gland is deep within the brain, I assume you mean the parotid gland, which is a salivary gland.

Are you sure you're not just pregnant?

On an serious note, trust your doctor, he knows what he's doing. Hormonal changes within the ovaries can cause problems all over the body, so just let him do his job because none of the advice on here will be of any use to you.

(Original post by Elwyn)
Since when? The pituitary gland is deep within the brain, I assume you mean the parotid gland, which is a salivary gland.

Are you sure you're not just pregnant?

On an serious note, trust your doctor, he knows what he's doing. Hormonal changes within the ovaries can cause problems all over the body, so just let him do his job because none of the advice on here will be of any use to you.

(Original post by sonicginandtonic)
Okay, I am really sorry if this is long. If you could read this I would be very greatful, I am worried

Anyway, do you think it's likely I have a cushings or a tumour? To be honest, I would rather just find out what has been causing me to constantly feel tired and why all these changes have been happening so I can get it all sorted.

Hi sonic,

A lot of your concerns are likely symptoms of your psychological health, anxiety, stress and maybe also connected to the physiological changes within all off us during teenage and young adulthood years.

It is unlikely that you have any major illness. The lump behind your ear is most probably an infection or soft cyst type of thing. But you should ask your GP about this as no-one here is medically trained.

Come back over to other thread if you want a chat.

Or maybe start a new thread over there 'cos everything is intertwined. Physical, psychological and emotional health all impact upon one another and this is probably what is going in your descriptive post above.

All your concerns are perfectly reasonably and you should not feel anxious about raising them. They are real and are obviously causing you great distress.

You take care now.

+rep coming your way just for the sheer bravery of stepping forward and seeking support with these problems

A lot of your concerns are likely symptoms of your psychological health, anxiety, stress and maybe also connected to the physiological changes within all off us during teenage and young adulthood years.

It is unlikely that you have any major illness. The lump behind your ear is most probably an infection or soft cyst type of thing. But you should ask your GP about this as no-one here is medically trained.

Come back over to other thread if you want a chat.

Or maybe start a new thread over there 'cos everything is intertwined. Physical, psychological and emotional health all impact upon one another and this is probably what is going in your descriptive post above.

All your concerns are perfectly reasonably and you should not feel anxious about raising them. They are real and are obviously causing you great distress.

You take care now.

+rep coming your way just for the sheer bravery of stepping forward and seeking support with these problems

Edit: Sorry, system won't allow me to rep you again

Hey thanks for posting.

It's strange that I found out about this condition, I was searching about my symptoms (the fact it's been 6 months since my last period, weight gain on stomach, my posture changes and hair changes) one of the other symptoms is also emotional instability/depression. So I think I may have cushing's as it would explain why I had been feeling the way I had. It would explain a few other things that have happened. Though like you said it could also just be the fact I am young. I'll have to see what my doctor says, though I just want to get whatever it is sorted out.
Anyway thank you for your help

Is the pituitary gland not in the middle of the base of the brain? You could not feel this with your fingers at all! It is certainly not behind your ear! The lump you feel must be something else, though it's odd that you would feel it so clearly above your skull if it was indeed to do with your brain.

You may have PCOS, the teeth getting crooked is normal for young adults as the last of the wisdom teeth grow in. PCOS can cause mental instability because of the hormones going up and down (and so is your mood).

I haven't read all the replies but try not to worry too much, it's easy to put lots of symptoms together (esp via the internet) and come up with something that possibly/ probably isn't there. However, I do sympathise - it's horrible to be so worried - and you need to find out what's happening. It's very important that you go to your doctor and tell him/ her about all this, all your symptoms and how worried you are. None of us can do what a qualified expert can - who can see you, take tests and examine you etc with the correct knowledge. Do please go back to the doctor soon as you can and they will almost certainly do tests that will put your mind at rest. Take care and all the best.

It's strange that I found out about this condition, I was searching about my symptoms (the fact it's been 6 months since my last period, weight gain on stomach, my posture changes and hair changes) one of the other symptoms is also emotional instability/depression. So I think I may have cushing's as it would explain why I had been feeling the way I had. It would explain a few other things that have happened. Though like you said it could also just be the fact I am young. I'll have to see what my doctor says, though I just want to get whatever it is sorted out.
Anyway thank you for your help

Hey sonic,

It could also be that whatever medication you are on (maybe you take epilan or something for epilepsy) is having unwanted side-effects.

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder, and that too could (only possibly) effect things like your cognitive processes.

These are things you need to discuss with your GP though. Just do it stage by stage. Nice and slowly. It can take a while to work out an effective treatment plan.

(Original post by aliluvschoc)
Is the pituitary gland not in the middle of the base of the brain? You could not feel this with your fingers at all! It is certainly not behind your ear! The lump you feel must be something else, though it's odd that you would feel it so clearly above your skull if it was indeed to do with your brain.

hi! Please try not to get depressed 18 year old, but you very well may have cushing's disease. I'm speaking to everyone on this sight. Telling everyone everything is ok and you may not have it is great, but may be unrealistic if you do have it. I know, I have had it for seven years. I can't begin to tell you what it has done to my life. I will truly never be the same ever and my family has had to suffer with me. I only want to tell you how to be positive and what to do to fight for your life. Because with this disease if you are not young, you definitely will be fighting. I'm still fighting. The world thinks that half of us should die. I think not one of us should die when there is a cure. You can make it through this disease by trying to focus on something you enjoy. All I can offer you is food for thought.

Last edited by moonkatt; 22-09-2013 at 16:19.
Reason: removal of personal details